Laminated materials such as, for example, composites are widely utilized to increase structural rigidity in a wide variety of products. For example, composites are generally utilized by the airplane construction industry to build airframes, structural members of airframes, wings, wing spars, and the like. In some of the most advanced aircraft, where high strength and rigidity and low weight are extremely important, composites may account for a significant portion of the airframe as well as the external surface or skin. Typically, these composites are constructed from a plurality of layers placed over a form. These layers are often referred to as partial or full plies. Each ply may be in the form of unidirectional fiber material, woven fibers in a fabric, braided, or a variety of other conformations. Plies of unidirectional fiber material are often placed in several direction or strand orientations such as, 0°, 90°, ±45°, and the like. The fibers may be made from any of a multitude of natural and/or “man-made” materials such as fiberglass, graphite, Kevlar®, and the like.
In a “dry layup,” the plies of reinforcing material are placed on a form or mandrel and then saturated with a resin such as epoxy. If an excess of epoxy is present in the layup, the plies may “float” off the mandrel or create layers or pockets of epoxy that add weight to the layup without adding significant strength. However, if the plies are insufficiently saturated with epoxy, internal and/or external voids may occur. Such voids may result in undesirable material strength properties and/or surface imperfections. While conventional methods and devices have been employed to overcome these issues, these conventional solutions have not been fully successful.
Accordingly, it is desirable to provide a system, apparatus and method for infusing resin into a layup that is capable of overcoming the disadvantages described herein at least to some extent.